During underground mining, it is a requirement for purposes of safety as well as federal law to install support to the roof of a passage at various intervals. This is often done using a mining machine known in the vernacular as a “roof” bolter. Typically, such a roof bolter is capable of both forming (drilling) boreholes and then installing roof anchors or “bolts” in the boreholes.
Bolters sometimes include an elongated boom for raising and lowering an attached bolting module, which incorporates a drill for forming the borehole for receiving the bolt or anchor. Sometimes, these booms are unmanned. However, in some cases they include an onboard station designed to support the operator of the bolting module.
In such cases where an operator station is provided, it has in the past been the case that the elongated boom is positioned between the operator and the corresponding rib of the mine passage to protect the operator from lateral hazards, such as rib rolls. From this position the boom serves as an obstacle that prevents the operator from easily and efficiently accessing the rib, such as to install the resin or bolt in the borehole once formed. As a result, it has in the past been proposed to use mechanical systems for installing the resin and bolts in the rib, but this increases the complexity and cost of the resulting bolting module.
Accordingly, a need is identified for a boom arrangement carrying an operator station adapted for installing support in the rib of a mine passage. The boom would allow an operator positioned at the station easy access to the rib for drilling a borehole, inserting resin in the borehole, and installing an anchor, such as a bolt. Despite the enhanced access, the boom would also incorporate features that check the operator's activities and help prevent use of the boom in an unintended manner.